Council refuse to empty bin with ‘incorrect’ items

A Banbridge resident has written an open letter to the Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council after it refused to empty his green recyclable bin.

The resident, named in the letter as Jamie, witnessed a council worker checking the contents of his bin before writing a note and leaving it there.

When he challenged her on this he said she explained the bin would not be emptied as it contained two small plastic wrappings and a polystyrene meat container.

He said: “I have been placing these items in the bin for years and the bin was always emptied. I asked what I was to do with the bin now and she stated I would need to remove those items, but it would not be emptied until the next time.

“We as a family have always tried to be waste conscious and do our best to obey instructions. As far as I see the council treat residents with contempt when without warning after years they turn up and refuse to empty the bins leaving them a month without emptying.”

The council has said they have responded to the resident but would like to make the following points clear.

A statement said: “Waste collection calendars are delivered annually to all households outlining what can and cannot be placed in each bin. A free mobile app entitled Bin-Ovation is also available.

“This policy has been in place since the introduction of the co-mingled green bin collection in 2011 and therefore will be acted upon when incorrect materials are found in the dry recyclable containers.

It concluded: “The green bin can accept six common materials, cardboard, paper, plastic bottles, metal, tetra paks and plastic containers. These are the only items that can currently be recycled by our recycling processor.”